The forest grew thicker as the path narrowed, trees leaning in like listeners to secrets unspoken. Mai and Tiffany had walked since dawn, the air between them still heavy with last night's silence.
Tiffany hadn't mentioned Leo. Mai didn't ask.
But something had changed. There was a weight in Tiffany's steps that wasn't there before. And for Mai, the journal rested against her back like a quiet heartbeat.
As the sun dipped behind the clouds, they reached a clearing — overgrown, quiet, marked only by a rusted wooden post in the center. Tiffany stopped. "Feels... off."
Mai crouched down. The Earth had been disturbed recently. Footprints — deep ones. Heavy.
Then, a voice.
"You always did walk too loudly."
Mai spun.
Standing at the edge of the trees was a tall figure. Broad shoulders. Purple eyes. A violet aura gently pulsing around him like breath.
"...Duncan?"
He stepped forward, cautious.
"Hey, Mai."
Mouth slightly open, Mai froze. The same voice. The same eyes. But everything else — older, colder, stronger.
Tiffany narrowed her eyes. "Who's the handsome stranger?"
"We know each other," Mai said quietly. Then, louder: "Where the hell have you been?!"
She stormed forward and punched him hard.
Duncan didn't react. Not at first. Then, slowly, he smiled.
"I deserved that."
Mai's fists trembled. "You were in Glob. You left us. You left my mother. Me."
His face fell. For a long moment, he said nothing. Then:
"I didn't run. I couldn't stop it. I stayed hidden in the ashes for hours. I was ashamed. I thought you were dead."
Tiffany stepped closer. "He's one of us?"
"Yeah," Mai muttered. "He carries a flower, too."
Duncan nodded. "The violet. Compassion."
Tiffany raised an eyebrow. "Of course. The soft one."
Duncan gave her a look — not annoyed, not amused. Just calm. "And you are?"
"Tiffany Reto. Sunflower. Pleasure's mine."
He bowed slightly. "You fight like someone who doesn't care about dying."
"I don't."
Mai interrupted. "What are you doing here?"
"Tracking the agents like you. And searching. For someone who might have answers."
Mai's eyes sharpened. "Yamora sent us to look for the next piece. The Dragon Rose."
Duncan's expression changed. "I've heard the legends. I'm not sure it exists."
"It does," Mai said. "I saw a symbol. Felt it. It's real."
He looked between them.
"Then we're walking the same path."
They set up camp together that night. It was awkward at first. Duncan cooked. Tiffany sat apart, plucking grass with bored fingers. Mai stayed silent.
Later, while the fire crackled low, Duncan spoke:
"Do you ever feel like your power is watching you? Waiting to judge you?"
Mai looked at him. Then nodded.
Tiffany said nothing, but her fingers had stopped moving.
"Then maybe," Duncan added, "We're not fighting each other. We're trying to outrun the versions of ourselves we're afraid to become."
Silence.
Then Tiffany stood.
"I'm sleeping. Wake me if a god shows up."
She disappeared into the tent.
Duncan smiled. "She's... different."
"She's broken," Mai said.
"Aren't we all?"
Mai didn't answer. She just stared at the fire.
For the first time in years, she felt like something lost was slowly returning. Not hope. Not comfort.
Just... a piece of her old self.
Still breathing.